Mishkin Berteig

🌟 Reflecting on an Inspiring Event: "Enabling a Data-Driven Mindset — Fostering Excellence" 🌟 I had the incredible opportunity to speak alongside industry leaders Qahir Rajwani, and Andrew Ricchetti at this fantastic event. It was truly exciting to engage with colleagues and discuss the importance of data literacy in today's organizations. 🔍 Event Highlights: ·        Assessing and evaluating current workforce skills ·        Creating buy-in to drive data fluency across the enterprise ·        Inspiring a data-driven mindset from the top down ·        The discussions were insightful, and the energy in the room was palpable. Fostering a data-driven culture is essential for overcoming data context and self-serve technology challenges. Here are some key takeaways: 1.     Assessing Workforce Skills: It's crucial to regularly evaluate the current data skills within the workforce to identify gaps and areas for improvement. This helps in tailoring training programs effectively. 2.     Driving Data Fluency: Creating buy-in across the enterprise is essential for driving data fluency. This involves clear communication of the benefits of data literacy and engaging leadership to champion these initiatives. 3.     Inspiring a Data-Driven Culture: Fostering a data-driven mindset from the top down ensures that data literacy becomes an integral part of the organizational culture. Leaders play a pivotal role in setting the tone and encouraging data-driven decision-making. 4.     Overcoming Data Context Challenges: Addressing the challenges related to data context and self-serve technology is vital. This includes providing the right tools and support to enable employees to leverage data effectively. 5.     Establishing Data Academies: Some organizations are setting up data academies to systematically build data skills across the workforce. These academies offer structured learning paths and resources to enhance data literacy. 6.     Integrating Data Literacy into Strategy: Weaving data literacy initiatives into the overall D&A strategy ensures that these efforts are aligned with the organization's goals and objectives, leading to more sustainable and impactful outcomes. The event highlighted the importance of a holistic approach to building a data-driven organization, emphasizing continuous learning, leadership support, and strategic alignment. Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to such a vibrant and thought-provoking session. Let's continue to drive excellence through data! Grateful for the incredible support from my Kainos family, especially Neil Gabriel and Kyle Thompson. Their encouragement and belief in my potential have propelled me to seize amazing opportunities like this one. Here's to pushing boundaries and reaching new heights together! 🚀💡 #TeamKainos #Gratitude #GrowthMindset #AchieveMore #DataDriven #DataLiteracy #Analytics #Leadership #DataScience #AI #EnterpriseExcellence #Kainos #Evanta #CDAO

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🌐 Stay Compliant with Law 25 in SharePoint! 📜 Check out this insightful article on Quebec's new Law 25 and how it affects your data management and compliance strategies. 🔍 Discover key insights on: What Law 25 entails Best practices for Law 25 compliance using SharePoint Ensure your organization stays ahead of the curve and maintains compliance effortlessly! 👉 Read more here: https://lnkd.in/d89uAuy5 #Compliance #SharePoint #Law25 #ECMInsights

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🤖 OpenAI just launched a 1-800 number for ChatGPT, and I can't help but think about what this means for Canadian innovation. "Your call may be monitored for quality assurance" hits differently when it's AI monitoring AI in both official languages. 🇨🇦 Some context: • 94% of urban Canadians have internet access • Only 45% of rural communities have reliable broadband • Most remote Indigenous communities still lack basic connectivity So when OpenAI markets this as "AI for people without internet access," I have questions: 🤔 Like... how exactly will someone without reliable internet: 1. Know about this service? 2. Get technical support? 3. Access the resources ChatGPT suggests? While we're building AI phone lines, communities in Northern Alberta are still fighting for basic connectivity. As part of Calgary's tech ecosystem, this raises some interesting questions: 💡 The Opportunity: Instead of adding AI to everything, what if we focused on: • Supporting startups solving real Canadian connectivity challenges • Building tech that works WITH our infrastructure limitations • Creating solutions for rural innovation Shoutout to Canadian startups like MCSnet actually working on rural connectivity solutions. That's the kind of innovation we need! 🎯 For Founders: Sometimes the biggest opportunities aren't in adding AI to existing solutions, but in solving fundamental infrastructure challenges. #CanadianTech #RuralInnovation #AlbertaTech #DigitalDivide #StartupStrategy

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Hello BCM practitioners!!    With the RIE Toronto webinar rapidly approaching, we realized our original date of April 23 conflicts with the Fusion User Group full day conference in Toronto, and the following day's BCI Canada Chapter Summit 2024 - so we have shifted our date to accommodate both events – and the new date is in the middle of Business Continuity Awareness Week.  How perfect is that?    As this is a virtual event, it's free to attend, so feel free to share with your peers!     Please note the *new* RIE Toronto virtual event date is Wednesday, May 15, from 1:00 – 2:00pm.  (45-minute presentation followed by 15-minute Q&A)   Many thanks to everyone involved making sure we could shift our event!    The registration link is now open, and the details are below.  The event link will be shared closer to the date.      Looking forward to seeing you all virtually.    Sue Hilton  VP & Programming Director, RIE Toronto      Title:  From Parade to Protest to Pandemonium – Are you ready?    Who would have thought getting a ticket to a concert, celebrating a sporting win, or a protest / march could end up in utter chaos?    Shootings, stampedes, life altering injuries, and even deaths… civil unrest, blockades, emergency services disruptions and more.    Just a few examples we will examine:  Ongoing - War protest marches in Canadian cities (and around the world)  February 24, 2024 - Kansas City Chiefs Superbowl Parade (Kansas City)  January 29 – Feb 20, 2022 – Ottawa Freedom Convoy (Ottawa and across Canada)  December 2021 Travis Scott Concert (Houston, TX)  July 2019 – Raptors NBA Parade (Toronto, ON)  May 22, 2017 – Ariana Grande Concert (Manchester UK)  October 1, 2017 – Route 91 Harvest Music Festival (Las Vegas)    And so many more…  check out the Quick Links on www.drie.org (Toronto Chapter homepage) website for links to articles on these events.    These seemingly innocent events demonstrate how quickly gatherings can escalate to mass protests and civil unrest, which often occur spontaneously, creating unique challenges for any organizations trying to operate nearby. In these situations, businesses and safety professionals have little time to identify potential threats and ensure employee safety.     Suzanne Bernier, International Emergency Management & Resiliency Specialist and author of “Disaster Heroes”, explains how both organizations and individuals can prepare and respond. Suzanne will address the real-life events above (and more) and share lessons learned through her tips and strategies on:  - Unique planning and response challenges associated with protests and civil unrest  - Mitigation and response to protect your business, your employees, and your clients/customers   - What really happens in the mind of a victim/survivor when they are threatened or attacked  - Safety tips to consider when organizing or attending any mass gathering, including parades and concerts    Register now:  http://toronto.drie.org/

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With Parliament prorogued, Canada's Artificial Intelligence and Data Act is dead on the table. I will have much more to share on lessons to be learned from Canada's national AI legislation failure in the coming weeks/months, but for now, I'm starting off 2025 by re-sharing my article on AI Countergovernance. In AI Countergovernance, I provide a toolkit for communities & workers to resist AI policy that does not serve our interests and to take AI regulation into our own hands. Against a globally rising tide of illiberal backlash, digital repression, and deregulation, the principles and practices of bottom-up AI governance I outline in this piece are becoming more important by the day.

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As an independent contractor and consultant, I've had the opportunity to observe the inner workings of over 40 companies in southern Ontario. What stands out to me is the consistency in Agile practices across these organizations. They all utilize techniques such as User Stories, user story writing, relative estimation, and Planning Poker. However, I'm often left wondering where they have learned these practices, as I haven't seen them as part of standard role-based training, with one notable exception: SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) certifications. This curiosity led me to pursue SAFe certifications myself, seeking a formal education on these widely adopted practices. What I found is that SAFe certifications are incredibly versatile. As a certified SAFe Scrum Master, I am equipped to work within a SAFe organization, but also well-prepared for environments that follow Scrum or even Kanban, thanks to the comprehensive coverage of Agile practices in the SAFe curriculum. In Canada, we've seen a significant adoption of the Scaled Agile Framework over the past 5 to 7 years, particularly within large organizations. This widespread implementation makes SAFe certifications a valuable asset for any Agile professional. The versatility of SAFe certifications truly supports the idea of "One Cert for All." #Agile #SAFe #Scrum #Kanban #ScaledAgile #AgilePractices #AgileCertification #ScrumMaster #ProjectManagement #AgileConsultant #OntarioTech #ProfessionalDevelopment #SAFeCertification #AgileFramework #TechIndustry #AgileTransformation

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Toronto's government software waste highlights a broader problem in public sector tech adoption: misaligned incentives and outdated systems lead to millions in waste. The City of Toronto's Auditor General just released a scathing report showing the city wasted $11M on unused software licenses. Let's break down the numbers: 💸 Total software budget (2019-2023): $235M 💸 Total waste identified: $10.9M 💸 Unused Microsoft M365 licenses: $6.9M 💸 Inactive employee licenses: $1.4M The most striking example? In 2021, Toronto bought 10,000 Microsoft M365 licenses at $5.1M annually despite Microsoft explicitly warning their network could only handle 6,000 users. The results were predictable: 1⃣ Year 1: 90% of licenses went unused 2⃣ Year 2: Over 50% still unused 3⃣ Expected $27M in productivity gains never materialized 4⃣ Security risks from keeping active licenses for departed employees This isn't about blaming individual civil servants—they're working within a system that often prioritizes bulk purchasing to save money without considering implementation challenges. The problem is structural: 1️⃣ Incentives reward immediate cost savings over long-term efficiency 2️⃣ Procurement systems designed for physical goods struggle with digital services 3️⃣ Limited flexibility to adjust plans when circumstances change 4️⃣ Complex approval processes that slow down essential infrastructure upgrades The most concerning part? This isn't new. The Auditor noted that 12 recommendations from previous software audits remain unimplemented, most over 5 years old. This persistence suggests the issue isn't with people, but with the system itself. The real questions we should be asking: ❓ How can we redesign procurement systems for the digital age? ❓ What incentives would better align public spending with public value? ❓ How many other cities face similar structural challenges? At Publicus, we believe modernizing government operations isn't about pointing fingers—it's about building better systems that enable public servants to serve effectively. We need to reimagine how government operates in the digital age. #govtech #publicsector #toronto #digitaltransformation

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Responsible #adoption is the crux of making #artificialintelligence benefit the average Canadian and #Canada’s economy as a whole. In a sector as hyped as #AI, it can be easy to believe that one is falling behind. With the delta between estimates of the impact of AI on the US labour market as large as the entire population of Germany, it’s hard to know who to believe. In this context, the Dais believes data quality is paramount. Here are 3 key trends from our recent AI related reports:   ⁃ our business technology adoption studies show AI adoption in Canada is very limited. While large companies are adopting AI disproportionately, while only 4% of Canadian businesses have adopted AI ⁃ our analysis of the economic history of past technological labour market impacts coupled with modern economic modeling tools suggest that in the long run, and across the entire economy, AI will not to destroy jobs, but rather will enhance work. ⁃ Real time job demand data reveals that only 1% of job postings in Canada explicitly ask for AI skills.

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Great reporting here Howard Solomon! "LinkedIn has voluntarily promised to stop using the personal information of Canadian members to train its generative artificial intelligence models while it answers questions from federal privacy commissioner about user consent."

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Having been a tech #entrepreneur for 30 years now, this is absurd. Colin Deacon outlines key issues with the newly announced increase in Capital Gains taxes in #Budget2024 and long standing flawed policies. #Innovation doesn’t just happened. It comes about as a result of risk-taking entrepreneurs (taking little salary, if any, for long periods) who raise early-stage investment capital from Angel Investors (investing after tax dollars), who then work to attract foreign direct investment in order to build, grow, and scale in #Canada. This level of risk is taken in the hopes of a successful outcome of an exit (acquisition, IPO, etc.). Many successful outcomes lead to re-investment in other ventures and creation of new early-stage companies. Does it seem right to tax them again and again on after tax dollars? Re-investment tax credits, flow-through shares, or other solutions must be considered in order to mitigate the impact of Angel investors pulling back (leading to less deals for Venture Capital investors) and entrepreneurs leaving Canada. Justin Trudeau, Chrystia Freeland, François-Philippe Champagne — reconsider your position as this is Not best for the long term growth of Canada. #AngelInvestors #VentureCapital #TalentRetention

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Solving problems within the Canadian tech industry requires a national attitude adjustment on several key fronts: - Adopting a long-term thinking approach rather than focusing solely on short-term gains - Thinking big and competing on a global scale, not just locally - Recognizing that a few highly motivated and properly incentivized individuals can create massive value for the country It feels as though Canada needs its own version of the Iwakura mission, where someone deeply understands the traits that have made the US so successful historically and the lessons Asia has learned in modern times that have led to their rapid ascension. This person would then run a campaign based on those lessons. Until the root causes are addressed, it's difficult not to recommend that individuals align themselves with the US in their pursuit of building, as failing to do so could severely limit their potential.

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Grateful to my friend Luc Beaudoin for recommending The Phoenix Project to me. While I am familiar with the concepts in the book around #DevOps, it can be helpful to get a fresh take on them to see if there is anything that I missed. The big reminder for me was how much the shift to DevOps is about people and #leadership - not just process and technology. A key element required for successfully deploying DevOps is an environment where people have agency - they can make decisions and execute at their level without needing multiple layers of approvals. This is essentially having people with #leadership abilities at every level of the Organization - something recommended in one of my favourite books, Turn the Ship around by L. David Marquet. The other people element is around the creation of a culture of learning. DevOps requires teams and people to test and try things as well as learn from their failures. Having processes in place will help but without the leadership that supports risk taking and an environment of #psychologicalsafety, this will be doomed to failure. When thinking about how to improve performance in technology and IT, you can never forget about the critical roles played by leadership and people. If you have a chance, I’d recommend reading the updated version of the book. https://lnkd.in/g_BpC5BN

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A must watch. for any Front End developer. a simple structure that reconstructs how Css operates within your mind. Allowing our approach to me more intentional instead of arbitrary and filled with hope. https://lnkd.in/dE3dbRDj

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A major shift in Canada's consulting industry ✅ Digital Transformation and Data Analytics: The rush for digital upgrades isn’t slowing down. Businesses crave efficiency and competitiveness, pushing the demand for digital transformation consulting sky-high. Likewise, data analytics and AI aren’t just buzzwords but essentials, powering insights that drive decisions. ✅ Enhanced Client Collaboration and Project Management: Gone are the days of distant consultants. Now, it’s all about working hand in glove with clients to craft success. And with projects sprawling across geographies, mastering project management tools has become non-negotiable. ✅ Consistent Growth and Competition: The Canadian consulting scene is buzzing. Thanks to a strong economy, we're seeing more players enter the game, ensuring healthy competition and innovation. ✅ Booming Government and Financial Sector Demands: With government spending on the rise and financial sectors seeking out sharp consulting minds, the opportunities are ripe for the taking. ✅ The Gig Economy and Specialization Surge: The gig wave is hitting hard, with more firms opting for specialized consultants over generalists. This shift not only diversifies the talent pool but also elevates the quality of consultancy. Amidst this transformation, startups stand to gain. Adapting to digital trends, striking closer client relationships, and exploring the gig economy's opportunities are key to thriving. For those ready to evolve, the future is bright. ⬆️ Are you part of it?

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This is Part 1 of a 2-part series on the future of the "IT Paradigm." In Part 1, Michael Crispin and I, along with our two special guests Kevin Dushney and Joel Nichols, set the stage for how we arrived at this moment in time for the "corporate IT function" and the IT Leadership historically needed to "run the show." You can only begin to explore the future of the IT Paradigm once you can understand how it has evolved over the last 25 years to where we are today. Join us next week as we explore Part 2, where, now fully armed with the context of the past and present, we will look at the future and the possible new paradigms for IT. #calculusofit #itleadership #nextgenIT #decentralization #itorganization

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Ottawa is an Entrepreneurship Capital Sincere thanks to the #Techopia Team at the Ottawa Business Journal for sharing the stories of these three prolific serial entrepreneurs who continue to build thriving tech companies in our region. The impact they have achieved on our economy and ecosystem is immense. Learn why these founders choose to start and scale companies in Canada's Capital over other tech ecosystems. We are privileged to collaborate with each of them in different ways. A few of my favourite quotes... "There is a great culture here of very loyal people that enjoy working for startups. They hang in there. I think people here have a greater sense of commitment and loyalty to the projects they’re working on than in other tech ecosystems, which is a unique feature of our market.” -Mike Weider, Startup Founder, CEO, Advisor and Director of the Invest Ottawa Board "The local entrepreneurial spirit thrives. Some of that originated from the large tech companies of the past, such as Mitel and Nortel, as well as from those of the present, like Shopify, with former employees of those companies contributing to the growth of Ottawa’s tech ecosystem by spinning out several great companies." -Marc Gingras, Co-Founder and CEO, Bloks “Everything that you need to build a company exists in Ottawa. I also think it’s the best place to live. That combination is, I think, the magic that you need to thrive." -Aydin Mirzaee, Co-founder and CEO of Fellow.app Looking to learn more? Read the inspiring article below, or reach out to me to explore how our IO Venture Development team can help you achieve your startup goals and engage our amazing entrepreneurship ecosystem. #FoundersHelpingFounders

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This should be a great session. For my part of it I'll be talking about the future of agile.

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Good analysis IMHO. Focus Canada’s limited investment on applying AI to challenges rather than trying to go toe-to-toe with established models. “The good news is that Canada can still win in the AI space. But to do so, Canada must shift its focus to the application layer of the AI stack.” https://lnkd.in/dftvfpyf

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